I suppose this film is simply too elegant, too intelligent, and too thought provoking for the average viewer. Perhaps this is why few people have heard of the movie, even though I tend to grab several copies every time I walk into a Blockbuster or a Movie Gallery and put them on top of say, The Pacifier. Or that Larry the Cable Guy movie. I also used to draw mustaches on the cover model of as many issues of Cosmopolitan magazine that I could while I waited in line at the grocery store. Big Flick's in Burlington. I simply deplore mediocrity, and that's pretty much all the marketing machine sells us these days. They sell us so much that is sub par that we begin to accept it as the norm, but I tell you I would gladly pay for excellence instead, and that's what this film delivers. Excellence. The casting is genius and genuine, Travolta and Macht and little miss Scarlet deliver seamless performances, imbuing the characters they portray with a 360 degree view of the evolution of the human soul. The supporting cast, Deborah Unger in specific, deliver the remaining blows to the heart, rendering this film a must see. A must add to your home collection. A must recommend to friends and family. Add to all that the stunning images of a pre Katrina New Orleans, now and forever the best city on Earth, and there is no denying the force A Love Song For Bobby Long carries into an open and evolved soul. The soundtrack, Grayson Capps in particular, is inspired as well.
All in all, this is a literate person's film. A reader's film. A gross portion of the American viewing public would love to actually be as smart as this movie needs them to be, and that's just the sad state of education in the United States. My advice to all of you is simply this: watch it anyway. If you hear something referred to in the film then look up the author on the internet and read the books mentioned in the film. You will be enriched from within, and then will be able to revisit this film with the smarts it requires of a viewer. Rise to the challenge. You will end up a better person from the experience, and there just are not many movies these days that can lay claim to that brand of impact.
All in all, this is a literate person's film. A reader's film. A gross portion of the American viewing public would love to actually be as smart as this movie needs them to be, and that's just the sad state of education in the United States. My advice to all of you is simply this: watch it anyway. If you hear something referred to in the film then look up the author on the internet and read the books mentioned in the film. You will be enriched from within, and then will be able to revisit this film with the smarts it requires of a viewer. Rise to the challenge. You will end up a better person from the experience, and there just are not many movies these days that can lay claim to that brand of impact.